MDC approves funds for city infrastructure projects

Published 1:03 pm, Friday, October 26, 2012

Midland Development Corp. approved the allocation of up to $7.75 million in funding Friday for various infrastructure projects and studies around Midland.

Though the board aims to bring in new businesses to the area, Executive Director Pam Welch said, it must provide basic necessities for them, as well.

"It's imperative we keep up the infrastructure of the city along with the growth of the city," she said.

Briarwood Avenue Extension: $1.5 million

MDC agreed to provide up to $1.5 million toward the development of an extension of Briarwood Avenue from Holiday Hill Road to Avalon Drive.

The funds will be used for the first mile of a roughly 3-mile plan for the road to be extended to Highway 158, said city engineer David Beard. The current route, which experiences heavy oilfield traffic and passes the Midland Independent School District's bus barn, will be expanded into a five-lane thoroughfare in three phases, Beard said. The city is still exploring other funding options for the next two phases and anticipates the first mile to be finished after one year of construction, he said.

Tradewinds Corridor Project: $6 million

The majority of funds awarded Friday came from the reallocation of $6 million toward improvements for the Tradewinds Corridor Project.

The move came as a result of the termination of an economic development agreement for the same amount with the city to construct a water line along State Highway 191, a project that has since been taken on by the Midland County Fresh Water Supply District No. 1 as part of its T-Bar Ranch pipeline project.

The $6 million will provide paving and drainage improvements, as well as the extension of utilities for the undeveloped areas between Thomason Drive and Gateway Plaza.

The City Council unanimously approved a request Tuesday for city staff to search for a firm to oversee paving, utility and drainage improvements for the Tradewinds Corridor. The meeting followed a briefing session with personnel from Fort Worth-based Dunaway Associates, which the city contracted to do a traffic analysis on the Gateway/Tradewinds development located west of Loop 250. The results showed that the area, which is one of the most rapidly growing in Midland, could become one of its most congested by 2022 if city officials don't take action to update various nearby intersections, such as Thomason Drive at Loop 250.

Drainage studies: $250,000

MDC also approved resolutions Friday appropriating up to $250,000 for the city to conduct drainage studies of the Jal and Midland Draws.

A comprehensive drainage study was completed in the mid-1990s, but it did not include the areas north and northwest of town "because they're being developed as we speak," City Manager Courtney Sharp said.

The Midland Draw study will take place between "A" Street and Highway 349, and the drainage study for Jal Draw will be from C.J. Kelly Park at Holiday Hill Road to Highway 349, where TxDOT has built a channel, Beard said.

"We're doing a study here so we can connect the two," he said.

As the city looks to find a route for Mockingbird, it will most likely follow the extended portion of Midland Draw, Beard said. The studies become even more important in a time of rapid growth in that area, he added.

"Once you get a plan in place, then you can control your development around the plan instead of trying to plan your study around the development," Beard said.

Councilman Jeff Sparks expressed concern over the amount appropriated toward the studies, which city staff said have been in the works for at least one year.

"To me, that seems to be a very big check for a drainage study," he said.

Beard originally estimated $100,000 for each study one year ago, but raised the maximum funding to $125,000 each to perform a more thorough study with current development in the area.

The resolution must be taken back to City Council members, who have the ability to approve it with a smaller budget, said Robert Rendall, MDC board secretary. If the study costs more than the amount approved by council, the city can later approve extra funding without having to return to MDC.

"We've got a good handle on what needs to happen," City Manager Courtney Sharp said at Tuesday's city council meeting. "We don't have a good handle on funding of those activities."

Several years ago, city staff presented funding options for drainage improvements in the form of a drainage fee or another revenue alternative, Sharp said. The city manager recommended that the council conduct a briefing after the studies are over to find resources to fund necessary projects.